For many years, prospectors and/or miners of gold have utilized large diameter, shallow, concavo convex sheet metal pans to separate gold from slurries of water and gold bearing sand. Such pans are commonly referred to as "gold pans". In use, gold pans of the character referred to above are engaged at opposite sides of their circular rims by both hands of the user. The pans, thus held, are usually dipped into the water and into the bed of a stream or other body of water being worked to dig up and hold a volume of sand and water. Thereafter, they are held substantially horizontally and are manually moved in an orbital and/or wobbling manner to cause the water and light particulate materials to flow upwardly and outwardly over the rims of the pans, so as not to cause heavier values such as gold to be carried away. The heavy values separate from the lighter materials and collect at the lower center portions of the pans where they can be conveniently collected and saved.
While the operation and use of old gold pans, as noted above, appears simple and therefore reasonably practical, the effective use of such pans requires exceptional skill which often takes extraordinary long periods of time to develop and which is unattainable by a large number of people.
Because the use of such pans requires the use of both hands, there are many people with various kinds of handicaps who cannot use them. Further, because the use of both hands is required, there are numerous places and circumstances where such pans cannot be used, because the users of the pans are not able to safely and comfortably free both hands for manipulation of the pans.
In addition to the above, old or common gold pans of the character referred to are provided in many different sizes and prudence dictates that the largest size pan a person can effectively handle be selected and used, since the volumes of material such pans can effectively handle can be said to be disproportionately little in comparison to the size of the pans.